Reconstructing a GIS of
19th Century Urban
Environmental Conditions
Brian Bettenhausen
Center For Population Economics
University of Chicago
Carlos Villarreal
Center for Population Economics
University of Chicago
Funding for this project was
generously provided by the
National Institute on Aging of the
National Institutes of Health
under program project grant P01
AG10120
Research Goals
Better Understand the Health and
Economic Conditions within 19th
Century US Cities
Requires the construction of a GIS to
integrate address-level, municipal and
federal records
Challenge
Fundamental spatial features, including
the paths of streets and rivers,
significantly changed within cities
during the 20th century
Modern data are only useful in regions
of limited change
Cincinnati – 2009 Census Tiger Shapefiles
Cincinnati – CPE Historical Reconstruction
Circa 1930
The CPE Urban GIS Project:
1. Reconstruct the historical street layout as
a basemap
2. Redraw the administrative boundaries
employed by agencies reporting on
conditions within cities from 1830-1930
3. Collect, Digitize and Link Data
•
Census Data
•
•
Ward and Enumeration District-Level
Municipal
•
•
•
Ward, Assembly, Health and Sanitary District-Level
Block-Level
Address-Level
Historical Basemap
Reconstruction Examples
Cincinnati and Chicago
Cincinnati Closeup
Cincinnati Closeup
Chicago – Full Spatial Extent
1930 Chicago Extent
Current Chicago Extent
Chicago – West Town
Chicago – West Town – CPE Centerlines
Chicago – West Town with 1938 Aerial
Chicago – UIC District – Historically Dense
Chicago – UIC District
Chicago – UIC District with 1938 Aerial
Reconstructing Administrative
Boundaries
Ward History Example
Boston
Boston Wards 1830
Boston Wards 1835
Boston Wards 1836
Boston Wards 1838
Boston Wards 1850
Boston Wards 1856
Boston Wards 1862
Boston Wards 1866
Boston Wards 1867
Boston Wards 1869
Boston Wards 1878
Boston Wards 1885
Boston Wards 1895
Boston Wards 1901
Boston Wards 1911
Boston Wards 1922-1930
Incorporating Census Data
New York City
• Ward Level Density in 1850 and 1860
Boston
• Ward Level Crude Mortality and Density in 1860
Baltimore
• Ward Level Child Mortality and Density in 1860
• Precinct Level Child Mortality in 1890
Chicago
• Enumeration District Level in 1880
New York City Population Density per Acre in 1850:
Population Data from the Federal Census
New York City Population Density per Acre in 1860:
Population Data from the Federal Census
Boston Population Density per Acre 1860:
Data from the Federal Census
Boston Mortality Distribution 1860:
Data from the Federal Mortality Census
Baltimore Population Density per Acre in 1860:
Population Data from the Federal Census
Baltimore Ward Crude Mortality Rate 1860:
1890 Federal Mortality Census
Baltimore Ward Child Mortality Rate 1860:
1890 Federal Mortality Census
Baltimore Precinct Child Mortality 1890:
1890 Federal Census – Statistics of Cities
Baltimore Precinct Child Mortality 1890:
1890 Federal Census – Statistics of Cities
Chicago Enumeration District Population
Density 1880: Federal Population Census Data
Density Measured as
Population per Acre
Density Ranging From
1.53 people per Acre
(Blue)
To
191.83 people per Acre
(Red)
Incorporating Other Data Sources
Homer Hoyt (1933) Land Value Maps
Homer Hoyt’s Land Values
1873
1892
Reconstructing Block-Level Data
Chicago Sewerage Installation History
Infrastructure Investment:
Chicago Sewers Installed 1873-1899
Investigating the capitalization of
Infrastructure investments into
local land values
Historical Chicago Sewerage Map
Dates range from 1873 (Green)
to 1899 (Red)
White lines indicate streets
without installed sewer pipes
Data from the Annual Reports of
the Department of Public Works
Reconstructing Address-Level Data
Residences of Union Army Veterans
1865-1930
Chicago Civil
War Veterans
Residential Information
- 1865 -1930
-Medical Records
-Lifetime Economic Outcomes
- Linkable to Environmental
exposures across the
life-cycle
Union Army Residences
South and West Corridors of Chicago
Chicago:
A Closer Look at Bridgeport Residents
Chicago:
Bridgeport Residences with 1938 Aerial
Chicago Union Army Residents
Note: 7 uncodable residences with contemporary data
New York City
Union Army
Veterans
New York City was the largest
city in the United States throughout
the study period
Our Address-level data allow a finer
investigation into the influence of
highly localized urban conditions on
later life health and economic
outcomes
New York City:
Distribution of Residential Data
CPE Map Server Project
• Provides a chloropleth map viewer
• Provides data extracts
• Provides complete citations and notes
http://www.cpe.uchicago.edu
Thank You!!
For further information, please contact
us:
Brian Bettenhausen:
[email protected]
Carlos Villarreal:
[email protected]